Cooperative

Housing cooperatives are a legal hybrid between an apartment and a condo. Typically, cooperative housing units are part of a multi-unit building, but rather than paying a mortgage, you are a shareholder in the building, entitling you to an apartment with legal documentation similar to a lease agreement. Like condos, the rules of the co-op are regulated by a governing association with appointed board members.

Elements of design:

A cooperative housing agreement is essentially a lease, a purchase of a share of a corporation

Cooperatives are largely managed by the tenants of the building with monthly shareholder meetings to determine and uphold the rules of the building

Unlike renting, there are tax benefits to ‘owning’ a share in a cooperative residential building